Bromley Dental Practice

Why Do Gums Recede?

Have you noticed your gums look as if they might be pulling away from your teeth recently? Or perhaps your teeth look longer than before? Gum recession is where the gum tissue surrounding the tooth begins to wear away or pull back, exposing more of the crown of the tooth or even the tooth roots. When it occurs, it’s possible for pockets or gaps to form in between the tooth and the gum tissue which makes it very easy for bacteria to build up. Even worse, these pockets can be quite tricky to clean as it is nearly impossible to get your toothbrush right into them.

Dentist Bromley The main problem with gum recession is that it can affect the stability of your teeth because bacteria in the gum pockets will gradually eat away at the gum tissue as well as the supporting tissues and bone holding your teeth in position. If you do have gum recession or think your teeth look longer than before, it is worth contacting Dr Zaki Bashir for a proper checkup. Gum recession isn’t something you should ever ignore and it’s a great idea to book an appointment with your Bromley dentist as soon as you can. But why do gums recede? In fact it can be due to a number of different factors which include:

Periodontitis which is a bacterial infection that destroys the gum tissue. This is the main reason for gum recession.
Genetics as some people are more susceptible towards gum disease, while others will simply have thinner gum tissue that is more easily worn away or destroyed by disease.
Brushing your teeth tooaggressivelyor using the wrong technique or a brush with hard bristles can damage your tooth enamel and will wear away your gums.
Poor home dental care as improper brushing and flossing makes it easy for plaque to build up on your teeth and this substance soon hardens into calculus or tartar. This can only be removed through booking a professional dental cleaning at Bromley Dental Practice. It is important to have regular professional cleanings to help prevent tartar build-up and subsequent gum recession.
Hormonal changes, as women’s hormone levels can fluctuate at certain points during their lifetime. Changes in hormonal levels can raise sensitivity towards disease causing bacteria in the mouth, increasing the risk of gum disease.
Smoking, as people who smoke are more likely to have sticky plaque that is difficult to remove and which can cause gum disease and gum recession.
Bruxism or clenching and grinding your teeth will put a lot of force on your teeth and gums and can cause the gums to recede.
Oral piercings can rub against the gums, wearing away gum tissue which is relatively delicate.

Treating gum recession can be quite straightforward provided you catch it early enough. Your dentist in Bromley can deep clean your gums through a process called scaling and root planing which removes the build-up of plaque and tartar on the teeth and tooth roots surfaces. This treatment can be very effective, and if necessary you can be prescribed antibiotics to help get rid of any remaining bacteria. If your gum recession cannot be treated through deep cleaning then you may need surgical treatment to try to repair some of the damage to your gums.

Zaki graduated from University of Bristol 1999 and has practiced in Kent since then. He is passionate about dentistry and providing the highest standard of care for patients, at the same time, he keeps himself at the cutting edge of modern dental techniques.

Follow Me:

Is That Glass of Fruit Juice Really Healthy for You And Your Family?

At the moment a 150ml glass of fruit juice can be counted towards your five a day but just recently the British Dental Health Foundation has advised that fruit juices are detrimental to dental health. It’s been discovered that many fruit juices aimed at children have at least 6 teaspoons of sugar and often come in cartons larger than the recommended portion size. In addition, many people are opting to drink fruit smoothies as they are marketed as being healthy due to the considerable fruit content. Unfortunately these also contain very high levels of sugar, as well as acid from the fruit and can do considerable damage to teeth.

Dentist Bromley Even though fruit juices can be a good way to consume more fruit, the high levels of acid and sugar often mean they can be bad for your dental health, particularly if you like to sip them over a long period of time. Smoothies tend to be a lot thicker and are prone to sticking to the teeth which enables sugar to come into contact with teeth for longer periods of time. Every time you have a fruit smoothie your teeth will be softened by acid in your mouth for up to an hour afterwards.

As a result, the British Dental Health Foundation is supporting Action on Sugar’s recommendations to remove fruit juice from the current guidelines for getting plenty of fruit and vegetables every day. They feel recommending fruit juice sends the wrong message to parents and could ultimately result in higher levels of childhood tooth decay.

Parents often provide children with fruit juice in between meals in the belief that they are giving them something that is relatively healthy. However if you do want to give your child a fruit juice or enjoy one yourself then it is best to do so as part of a meal. In general it is better to stick to giving children water or milk to drink, and to encourage them to eat the whole fruit rather than just the juice.

If you or another family member dolike to drink a lot of fruit juice and have not been to a dentist in a while then now might be a great time to book that check-up. Dr Zaki Bashir can assess the condition of your teeth and gums and will carefully check each tooth for any early signs of cavities. This is a visual examination, although he may gently probe the surface of each tooth to check for any softness in your tooth enamel.

Sometimes it is possible to reverse the early effects of acid erosion with fluoride treatments, but if a cavity has already begun to develop then it is much easier and cheaper to get it filled as soon as possible. It’s quite likely your Bromley dentist will recommend white fillings to mend any cavities as these are strong, and once in place are nearly invisible. As well as being cheaper to fill, early treatment reduces the possibility of more extensive tooth infections that can be pretty uncomfortable and which may require more extensive treatment such as root canal therapy to put right.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

Teeth Alignment: Should You Choose an Inman Aligner?

Do you want to correct your misaligned front teeth or relapse, but don’t prefer to undergo costly dental treatments? We have the right solution for you. The Inman Aligner is a revolutionary cosmetic dental appliance that adjusts teeth together, as if squeezing them. This treatment has been available for many years, but it’s been gaining attention only recently.

We’ve listed some information that you might find helpful when deciding whether this treatment is right for you.

How Does an Inman Aligner Look?

This dental appliance is made of Nickel Titanium coil springs with two aligner bows that sit on both sides of the teeth, which guide them to their new position. The inner aligner bows are available in different colours, like green and violet, while the front part is usually clear. The only visible part when you wear an Inman Aligner is a single wire on the front teeth. It’s similar to wearing retainers.

Can Inman Aligners Treat All Dental Conditions?

The Inman Aligner is a good choice for orthodontic relapse and dental conditions related to the upper and lower teeth, such as crossbites, crowding, rotations, and protrusion. It’s not an ideal treatment for all teeth, like correcting arches, though.

Are Inman Aligners an Affordable Choice?

As Inman Aligners move only a specific part of the teeth, it’s less costly than traditional and clear braces. In addition, our dentists have pre-programmed this treatment to minimise the number of dental visits. There’s no need to visit our clinic regularly unless prescribed.

What Happens When you Wear an Inman Aligner?

Depending on your pain tolerance, Inman Aligners might or might not hurt during the first few days of treatment. The discomfort will fade eventually, after taking aspirin, Tylenol, or any over-the-counter painkiller. In most cases, this dental appliance affects speech during the first to second week. As you get used to it, you’ll be able to speak normally again.

Inman aligners help patients adjust their teeth to achieve a beautiful smile. Contact us or visit our homepage to know more about the services we offer.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

Reasons Why You Should Consider Tooth Straightening

Orthodontics is often thought of as producing results that only affect the appearance of teeth, so it is easy to dismiss this treatment as being merely cosmetic. But the truth is that orthodontics in Bromley can do far more than just give you a nicer and more attractive smile, even though this is still a very valid reason for considering braces.

Dentist Bromley One excellent reason for thinking about braces is for the effects on your oral health. Braces can be used to correct issues with overcrowded or overlapping teeth, or to close up spaces in between teeth. If you have any of these problems then you might have found it is often difficult to keep your teeth as clean as you’d like. Teeth that are tightly packed in can be very difficult to floss, and it can be the same problem if they overlap. If you have gaps in between your teeth then these can often trap food.

Bromley Dental Practice has a couple of different options for straightening teeth which are designed to remedy most common orthodontic problems. The first is called Clear Braces^TMand this uses clear plastic aligners or positioning trays to gently move your teeth from their present positions into a more desirable arrangement. This system is very popular as the trays are virtually invisible and can easily be removed for cleaning, as well as during eating and for brushing and flossing. It is suitable for most people over the age of fourteen who have strong and healthy teeth that will respond well to orthodontics.

The second option is to choose the Inman Aligner. This system is also removable, and is ideal if your teeth are generally in the correct positions and you don’t have any real problems with the way they bite together. This is because an Inman Aligner concentrates on moving your front teeth, using two very thin metal bars that fit in front of and behind your front teeth. The bars are powered by springs and gently squeeze your teeth into the correct positions so they are gradually pulled into the correct alignment. An Inman Aligner could be the perfect solution for moving crooked or slightly overlapping front teeth, or for pulling protrusive teeth back into place.

Removable braces can be much easier to cope with, as there will be no need to try to clean around fiddly wires and brackets which can be very time-consuming. Instead all you need to do is to take your brace out for eating, and you can then clean your teeth before replacing it. One thing to bear in mind is patient compliance, as you do need to remember to wear your braces for them to work and you must use them for the recommended number of hours each day which is usually whenever you are not eating or cleaning your teeth.

If you would like to know more about orthodontics and how it could help you, then it is best to book a consultation with your dentist in Bromley. Dr Zaki Bashir can examine the way your teeth bite together, before suggesting a suitable system to make the required changes. He will only recommend orthodontics if he is sure it will provide the desired results.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

What is the Difference Between White Fillings and Inlays and Onlays?

If you have any signs of tooth decay then Dr Zaki Bashir is likely to recommend a filling, but there are several different types that can be used. This can seem confusing, as each is designed to have a slightly different purpose.

Dentist Bromley White fillings are made from a composite resin material that closely resembles your natural teeth. The material comes in many different shades, and even in different translucencies so once the filling is placed it should be virtually invisible. White fillings are commonly used to repair cavities in front teeth and to fill small to medium sized areas of decay in your back teeth. This material is pretty strong, but is not so suitable for filing larger areas of decay in back teeth as these are subjected to heavy chewing forces. In this case Dr Bashir is likely to recommend a different type of filling which is stronger. Once this is in place it will help restore strength to the tooth so you will be able to chew normally.

These larger filings are called inlays and onlays. An inlay replaces the central chewing surface of a back tooth, but an onlay will replace a larger area which includes the central chewing area plus one or more of the cusps. Tooth cusps are the raised points you can see on the edges closest to your cheeks and tongue.

Inlays and onlays can be made from gold or porcelain. In the past you might have been advised to have gold inlays or onlays as this material is very strong and hardwearing, but today’s modern porcelain can easily withstand the forces created during chewing and of course they look beautiful and are just about invisible.

White composite filings can be placed in a single appointment to Bromley Dental Practice, but inlays and onlays are slightly different. If they are made from gold then they will require at least two appointments to prepare the tooth and then to fit the restoration. This is because they have to be made in a dental laboratory. Porcelain inlays and onlays often have to be made in a laboratory, but we are able to fabricate them onsite with our CEREC machine. This is a milling machine that cuts the restoration out from a single block of coloured porcelain.

Dr Bashir will prepare your tooth before scanning it with a very small camera so there is no need to have any impressions. This information is fed into a computer and is used to create a design that is then sent to the milling machine. The porcelain block is preselected in a shade that closely matches your natural teeth, and is milled according to this design. Once it is completed it will be hand finished and polished before being fitted and cemented in your mouth. All this can be carried out in a relatively short space of time, while you wait in our comfortable surgery. You will be able to leave with your new inlay or onlay in place which is much better than having a temporary filing, and of course saves you from making another trip to our surgery.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

4 Foods that Put Your Oral Health at Risk

Most people think that sweet treats are the only threat to their oral health. What they fail to realise is that some of the food they serve on their table can be just as harmful to the teeth as sweets.

Here are some of the foods that you might want to cut back on:

Apples

There is a saying that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but does this apply to your dentist? Apparently not. According to studies, apples are among the biggest culprits when it comes to cracked teeth. These are also high in acid, which may damage the enamel and cause the teeth to stain. Eating crunchy apples is fine, but make sure to cut them into bite-size pieces to avoid biting too hard. Rinse your mouth with water after eating to wash away the acid.

Corn on the Cob

Chomping down on the cob can cause problems for your teeth. Your dental appliances may become loose or may crack, warranting a visit to your dentist for a quick fix. You do not have to avoid corn and miss its nutrients, though. Instead of serving the entire cob, scrape off the corn bits for easier consumption.

Wine

If you are a fan of wines, you may want to rethink your drinking habits. Both white and red wine may cause a series of oral problems that can ruin a good smile. Red wine is often associated as a cause of discolouration, while white wine leaves the enamel vulnerable to acid. No one is going to stop you from enjoying a glass or two of your favourite chardonnay or merlot; just do not drink too frequently.

Breath Mints

We love to keep our breath fresh and smelling good throughout the day; what most of us do is pop a mint or two. Sucking on these mint delights is like bathing your teeth in sugar. Some breath mints contain sweet ingredients that may actually do more harm than good to the teeth. Instead of popping these mints into your mouth, use xylitol to combat bad breath and bacteria.

It is important to be vigilant when it comes to the food you are eating or serving your family. If you want to learn more about how diet affects your oral health, Bromley Dental Practice can serve as your guide. Dr. Zaki Bashir will be more than glad to discuss the types of food that help preserve the health and beauty of your teeth.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

Gingivitis: Causes and Effective Treatments

Gingivitis is a common gum disease that causes irritation and inflammation of the gum tissue. Most victims, however, are unaware that they suffer from this condition because it does not cause any pain at all.

Though gingivitis is a mild form of gum disease, it is important to take it seriously and treat it immediately because it can become a severe condition. According to a recent study, gum disease is associated to heart attack, stroke and diabetes.

Determining the cause of gingivitis

Plaque forms when a person has a poor oral hygiene such as smoking, not brushing and flossing teeth regularly, and avoiding dental check-ups. Plaque is an invisible, sticky film composed mainly of bacteria. When it stays on your teeth for more than three days, the plaque hardens under your gum line and turns into tartar. This makes it more difficult to remove, as it serves as a shield for the bacteria. The longer the plaque and tartar stay, the more they irritate the gingiva.

Preventing and Treating Gingivitis

Untreated gingivitis mostly likely develops into a more serious gum disease like bone loss and tooth loss. The best way to maintain good oral hygiene is by:

Brushing your teeth at least twice daily. Soft or electric toothbrush is better at removing bacteria in your teeth. Brush thoroughly for two minutes; do not overdo.
Flossing, as it is the most effective way to remove food and plaque because it can go into the space between the teeth and gums.
Gargling a mouthwash after.

Visiting our Bromley dentist regularly is important. Our team will make sure to give you good oral health maintenance routine. If you think you have gingivitis, do not hesitate to contact us today. Our team will listen to your concerns, give you all the time you need and help improve your overall oral health.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

What is Restorative Dentistry?

Restorative dentistry is extremely important for helping to correct oral health problems, and to restore your mouth so you can bite and chew normally, and so you can speak clearly. It also helps repair or replace teeth so they look nice! There are lots of different procedures that come under the umbrella of restorative dentistry, including fillings, crowns, bridges, porcelain veneers, full and partial dentures and dental implants in Bromley.

Why Replace Missing Teeth?

When you visit Bromley Dental Practice, our aim is to help preserve your natural teeth as much as possible. We will always seek to restore teeth rather than extract them, but sometimes it can be a better solution to remove badly damaged teeth and to consider different ways of replacing them. Replacing any missing teeth helps protects your remaining natural teeth and promotes better dental health. It’s important to fill in any spaces in your mouth to prevent your natural teeth from shifting position, and these gaps also increase the risk of you developing cavities as it is easy for disease causing bacteria to build up. If you are missing teeth then it puts pressure and additional stresses on your remaining natural teeth through reducing the amount of surface area available to chew and grind food.

Visit Our Comfortable Dental Practice to Find out about All the Available Options

Dr Zaki Bashir is highly experienced in rebuilding people’s smiles and has an extremely good reputation in this area. He will be able to fully assess your current dental health during a consultation and will carefully explain all the available options to restore your teeth to full health. Our dental practice can produce a treatment plan that will be fully customised to fit your needs and budget. We use the latest techniques and materials to provide you with the very best level of dental care that we can.

Our Friendly Staff Is Very Good at Helping Nervous Patients Overcome Fears

We often find people are quite afraid of visiting a dentist, and this may have stemmed from a previous bad experience or it might be something they have picked up from their parents. It’s not uncommon for people to put up with the pain and discomfort caused by infected or badly damaged teeth rather than visit their dentist in Bromley. When you visit our dental practice you’ll discover the enormous difference gentle dental care can make to your overall experience.

Our aim is always to establish a good, positive relationship with patients and we encourage anybody with dental fears or phobias to discuss these with our friendly dental team. This will enable us to further customise your treatment plan so any dental procedures take place at a pace you feel comfortable with. Always remember that you can stop treatment at any time, and we will be constantly checking on you to make sure you are comfortable. You’ll also find our modern clinic is designed to be welcoming and extremely nonthreatening. Over time the aim is to gradually replace negative experiences in the past with positive visits to our dental clinic. There is no need to put up with broken and badly damaged teeth and we’d love to be given the opportunity to put a smile back on your face.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

Finding Out More about Dental Implants in Bromley

Are you considering dental implants in Bromley? If so then you probably have loads of questions you’d like to ask about treatment. Even though dental implants are a great way to replace teeth lost to disease or trauma, treatment can take several months or more to complete; it is not a quick fix. However properly maintained dental implants can be completely problem-free for many years or possibly for life.

Dentist Bromley They are still regarded as being the best and most reliable way to replace lost teeth, largely due to the way the implant replicates a natural tooth root. It not only anchors the replacement tooth firmly in position, but also manages to halt bone loss in the jaw. This is hugely important as bone loss can affect the stability of your remaining teeth, and the overall dimensions of your face. If you lose bone then you will lose some of the vertical height, creating the effect that the face is beginning to collapse inwards.

So can anyone have dental implants? Although the majority of people will be able to have this treatment, there are some who would be better off considering other options. This might be the case if you are a heavy smoker or drinker, as both of these habits make it much harder for the body to heal, increasing the risk of implant failure. You also need to be in reasonable dental health as any active gum disease must be treated before you can go ahead with surgery.

If you have any conditions that affect your immune system, or are receiving radiotherapy then dental implants in Bromley may not be the most sensible way forward. Lots of people grind or clench their teeth, but if this applies to you then it’s best to get this problem sorted out before you have dental implants. Dr Zaki Bashir can easily diagnose this issue for you, and treatment might be as simple as wearing a night guard.

The next step is to see how much bone you have available to hold the dental implants in position. Each dental implant needs to be surrounded by several millimetres of strong and healthy bone, and the way we determine this is to carry out various diagnostic tests. Dental x-rays and a CT scan will show us exactly what is going on in your jaw bone, and this information enables dentist in Bromley to precisely pinpoint the best location for your dental implants.

If you don’t have enough bone then it isn’t the end of the world, as it is possible to graft more bone onto your jawbone to ensure it has sufficient height and width to support the implants. Sometimes this is done as a separate procedure, and you will need to wait a few months for the bone to integrate with your existing bone, but if only a small amount is require then it might be possible to place the bone graft and the dental implant at the same time.

Deciding to have dental implants can be quite a big decision and we want you to feel as fully informed as possible. We always encourage our patients to ask all the questions they’d like.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

A Straighter Smile in Just a Few Months

Most people who have crooked teeth would prefer not to, and while one option is to have dental veneers it’s not always the healthiest choice as Dr Zaki Bashir would need to remove some tooth material to make room for the veneers. However the thought of wearing braces for many months or even years isn’t exactly appealing, especially as older style braces often meant wearing metal brackets combined with highly visible wires and elastics. It’s quite different nowadays, and adult orthodontics is much more common than it was even a few years ago. This is largely due to the development of new and far more innovative braces in Bromley that make the most of the very latest technology. In fact Bromley Dental Practice is able to offer patients a few different options for straightening teeth, and one of these can take as little as 2 to 4 months to work.

Dentist Bromley This particular brace is called the Inman Aligner, and is fully removable so it is very easy to look after your teeth and gums during treatment. It’s also possible for it to be left out completely for the occasional special event. The brace works through squeezing the teeth into the correct positions, and is primarily designed to only move the teeth visible when smiling. It uses a coiled spring that fits inside the tooth surfaces, placing pressure on the back of the teeth. At the same time another very thin metal bar is placed across the front of the teeth and has the effect of pushing the teeth back into position. This squeezing action is very effective at correcting the way teeth are aligned. The brace is extremely discreet as the metal wire going across the front the teeth is very thin, and this technology is tried and tested as it has been around for more than a decade now.

One thing patients often ask is whether treatment will be painful. It is possible that you will experience some discomfort while your teeth are being straightened as they are being pushed into new positions. Some people might need to take mild over-the-counter painkillers for the first week or so. It can also take a bit of time to get used to wearing the appliance as it may initially feel quite strange. The Inman Aligner could affect speech for the first week or so until your tongue becomes accustomed to the brace.

While the Inman Aligner is an excellent treatment, it is primarily designed to treat mildly misaligned teeth, or teeth that are only just slightly out of position. It’s also a very good treatment if you wore braces as a child or teenager, but failed to keep up with wearing your retainer and have since gone on to have an orthodontic relapse where the teeth have tried to move back towards their original positions.

If you think you might like to straighten your teeth then it’s best to make an appointment with your dentist in Bromley. They will need to carefully assess the way your teeth currently bite together to see if the Inman Aligner is suitable or if you would benefit from more comprehensive orthodontic treatment.

Bromley Dental Practice

Follow Me:

Contact Us